Counties with the highest unemployment in Texas
The first jobs report fully under the new Trump administration showed a softening job market, with the unemployment rate ticking up to 4.1% in February, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics figures released March 7.
Job growth increased but fell below expectations, one of several possible fissures appearing in the once rock-solid labor market. Businesses are pulling back on hiring as the economic forecast and policy outlook grow murkier due to volatile trade policies and large cuts to the federal workforce.
Federal government employment fell by 10,000 in February, pushing up total cuts to the federal workforce. In the first two months of 2025, 62,530 federal workers were let go. However, the most recent cuts, including the Department of Education's workforce getting slashed by nearly half, have not yet appeared in official jobs data. Retail employment also fell by 6,000.
The broader unemployment index, known as the U-6, which also includes laborers working part-time because they can't find full-time work, and those who want to work but have given up searching, rose to 8%, its highest since October 2021.
To get a glimpse of regional variations in employment, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in Texas, using BLS data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in January 2025, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.
Key takeaways: Jobs report shows softening labor market
February's job growth of 151,000 fell below economists' expected gains of 160,000, showing the labor market is cooling faster than predicted. Experts say many companies weighing policy changes and economic uncertainty are deciding it's safer to hold off on hiring decisions for now.
"If you were a company and you were saying, 'I'm looking to expand, or I'm looking to hire,' you would have investors in those companies saying, 'Are you crazy?'" Ron Hetrick, senior labor economist at Lightcast, told Marketplace.
Consumer spending fell in January for the first time in two years, which may have led to layoffs or hiring slowdowns, Nela Richardson, ADP's chief economist, told NBC News.
The big story: From bold promises to frozen labor market
After an initial market pop following Trump's electoral win, indexes have slumped to below when he took office, and uncertainty about the future of the markets is a common theme. Are threatened tariffs in place, delayed, reversed, or ramped up? Has that federal worker been fired or given their job back? Are those federal dollars slashed or reinstated? It's a question mark that changes daily.
Research shows that uncertainty invites lower investment, slows employment, and increases financial market volatility. The word "uncertain" showed up 47 times in the March edition of the Beige Book, the Federal Reserve's snapshot of reports from across the nation, compared to 17 times in the previous report from January.
The new administration's blitz of executive orders and trade policy waffling have cast a dense fog over the short-term economic outlook. One thing that is known? Uncertainty isn't good for business planning, job creation, or hiring.
In a March 12 interview with Semafor, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon noted that average consumers likely don't change "what they're going to do because they read about tariffs," but "companies might."
"Uncertainty is not a good thing," Dimon added.
To get a better idea of your community's current economy, read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in Texas.
49. Navarro County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 23,460 people (1,094 unemployed)
49. Wood County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 18,069 people (854 unemployed)
46. Aransas County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: +0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 10,078 people (481 unemployed)
46. Shelby County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: +1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,630 people (462 unemployed)
46. Jim Hogg County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: -0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,987 people (95 unemployed)
39. Hall County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: +0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,092 people (53 unemployed)
39. Gregg County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: +0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 57,470 people (2,796 unemployed)
39. Garza County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: +0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,577 people (77 unemployed)
39. DeWitt County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: +1.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,837 people (334 unemployed)
39. San Patricio County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: +0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 32,005 people (1,561 unemployed)
39. Real County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: +1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 919 people (45 unemployed)
39. Refugio County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: +1.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,877 people (141 unemployed)
32. Bee County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: 0.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 10,022 people (500 unemployed)
32. Hemphill County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: +1.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,171 people (58 unemployed)
32. Val Verde County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: -1.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 21,161 people (1,062 unemployed)
32. Waller County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: +0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 31,284 people (1,562 unemployed)
32. Duval County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: +0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,972 people (200 unemployed)
32. Polk County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: +0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 21,462 people (1,064 unemployed)
32. Jim Wells County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5%
--- 1-month change: +0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 15,720 people (790 unemployed)
30. Harrison County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: 0.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 32,163 people (1,636 unemployed)
30. Jeff Davis County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: +1.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 646 people (33 unemployed)
27. Panola County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: +1.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 8,725 people (455 unemployed)
27. Trinity County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: +0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,274 people (273 unemployed)
27. Cass County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: +0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 11,144 people (581 unemployed)
23. Eastland County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.3%
--- 1-month change: +0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,971 people (314 unemployed)
23. Liberty County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.3%
--- 1-month change: 0.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 43,085 people (2,301 unemployed)
23. San Augustine County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.3%
--- 1-month change: +0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,182 people (170 unemployed)
23. San Jacinto County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.3%
--- 1-month change: +0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 11,859 people (626 unemployed)
21. Jack County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.4%
--- 1-month change: +1.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,858 people (155 unemployed)
21. Cameron County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.4%
--- 1-month change: +0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 192,381 people (10,432 unemployed)
19. Willacy County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
--- 1-month change: -0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -2.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,281 people (513 unemployed)
19. Morris County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,941 people (272 unemployed)
18. Matagorda County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
--- 1-month change: +0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 16,656 people (946 unemployed)
17. Jefferson County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.9%
--- 1-month change: -0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 115,380 people (6,792 unemployed)
16. La Salle County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.1%
--- 1-month change: +2.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +3.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,740 people (166 unemployed)
13. Sabine County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,677 people (229 unemployed)
13. Newton County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.2%
--- 1-month change: -0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,191 people (320 unemployed)
13. Hidalgo County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.2%
--- 1-month change: 0.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 401,580 people (25,070 unemployed)
10. Marion County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.3%
--- 1-month change: +1.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,791 people (238 unemployed)
10. Jasper County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.3%
--- 1-month change: +0.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 13,093 people (829 unemployed)
10. Dimmit County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.3%
--- 1-month change: +3.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +3.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,989 people (189 unemployed)
8. Presidio County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.4%
--- 1-month change: +1.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,639 people (168 unemployed)
8. Tyler County (tie)
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.4%
--- 1-month change: +0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,525 people (417 unemployed)
7. Sutton County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.5%
--- 1-month change: +0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 936 people (61 unemployed)
6. Zavala County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.8%
--- 1-month change: -0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,366 people (299 unemployed)
5. Frio County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.4%
--- 1-month change: +2.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +3.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,441 people (474 unemployed)
4. Zapata County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.8%
--- 1-month change: +0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,648 people (364 unemployed)
3. Maverick County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.7%
--- 1-month change: +1.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 24,744 people (2,149 unemployed)
2. Kenedy County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 9.2%
--- 1-month change: +1.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +2.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 109 people (10 unemployed)
1. Starr County
- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 10.5%
--- 1-month change: +0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 25,269 people (2,654 unemployed)
This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Ben Popken, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.
